On 17/01/26 the 10 and under boys and girls teams travelled to Corby to compete in the 12 Counties Competition. Both teams had been looking strong in practice so hopes were high.

The first team Norfolk faced was Buckinghamshire. The boys: Henry at 1, Oliver at 2, Aksel at 3 and Ben at 4. And the girls Ionna at 1, Esmee at 2, Anastasia at 3 and Emily at 4. The boys showed a very clinical performance winning all 4 matches with Aksel only dropping 1 game and Henry showing great mental strength and winning in a 3rd set match tiebreak. The girls put in a very good effort but unfortunately lost the fixture 3:1 after a fantastic win at number 2.

The second fixture of the day was against Leicestershire. The boys showed excellent focus and won all four matches without dropping more than 3 games per match. A special mention to Oliver who managed to win his match 4:0 4:0. The girls were fired up to fight against Leicestershire and battled hard for a 2:2 draw. Esmee winning in a match tiebreak and Emily picking up her first win for Norfolk on the green ball.

Finally, the boys are looking to go 12 for 12 against Herefordshire and Worcestershire going into the last fixture. Henry, Oliver and Aksel played brilliant tennis and won their matches. Ben had a very tight match saving a match point at 10:9 down in the match tiebreak and winning 13:11. This meant that the boys won all 12 of their matches with a great display of professionalism. The girls had 4 tough matches and Esmee and Emily both won at 2 and 4 securing the 2:2 draw to end the day. 

The final standing ended with the boys at the top of the group and the girls coming a very close 3rd. A very positive day and deserved wins for all the hard work being put in by the players.

Report by Captain Barnaby Taylor